Rheumatism and arthritis are general terms for acute and chronic conditions characterized by inflammation and pain. Rheumatism is a general category of conditions characterized by inflammation and pain in muscle and joints, including, arthritis. Arthritis is characterized by inflammation of joints that causes swelling and pain. Types of arthritis include osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis (AS), and systemic lupus erythematosus. The cause of such diseases is not always fully understood but may be the result of other degenerative diseases, trauma or auto-immune diseases.
Inflammation refers to a protective attempt by an organism to remove art injurious stimulus and initiate the healing processes for the tissue affected by the injurious stimulus. Inflammation occurs as a defensive response to host invasion by foreign agents and mechanical trauma that results in an immune response, microbial agents such as bacterial and viruses, toxins and neoplasia. Inflammation can be classified as either acute or chronic. Acute inflammation is an initial response to harmful stimuli and is achieved by the increased movement of plasma and leukocytes from the blood into the injured tissues. A cascade of biochemical events propagates and matures the inflammatory response, involving the local vasculature, the immune system, and various cells within the injured tissue. Chronic inflammation, or prolonged inflammation, leads to a progressive shift in the type of cells, which are present at the site of inflammation, and is characterized by simultaneous destruction and healing of the tissue from the inflammatory process.
Prior methods for preventing and treating inflammatory diseases have generally focused on oral medications such as steroidal cortisone derivatives and numerous non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). Unfortunately, these drugs have undesirable side effects. Other efforts have focused on joint, implants such as knee or hip implants. These methods involve lengthy and costly surgical procedures that three the patient to undergo invasive surgery with a significant recovery period.
Given the problems with current methods for treating, arthritis and inflammation associated with arthritis, there is a continuing need for new methods and compositions useful for treating arthritis and inflammation associated with arthritis and in particular, for food compositions effective in managing these conditions